This week's NDP figures present a not so bad picture of gaming retail - but is one of the big chains in financial trouble?
Okay, so the local iteration of the games industry, according to retail figures, ain't all that bad. The two big console makers are each claiming to best of breed, and the next year or two is apparently looking even better.
Except for retailer, GAME.
A report from Eurogamer revealed last week that it's in talks with lenders regarding problems with credit. Basically, it's in trouble, with no credit insurance, and is actually using liquid cash to purchase stock. Following the Eurgamer piece, GAME announced that, amongst other strategies, it was undertaking "a review of its overseas operations".
That sounds rather ominous for the 94 Australian stores. We contacted Paul Yardley, the local MD, but got a pretty firm No Comment.
In a recent investor call, John Riccitello of EA admitted to being worried about a "Major European retail partner"; apparently, things are so bad that its affecting even EA's bottom line.
Issue: 137 | June, 2012